Presser-foot mechanism for sewing-machines.



J. B. HADAWAY.

PRESSER FOOT MBGHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 29, 1904.

Patented June 25, 1912.

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comma ILANDGRAPH 50.. WASHINGTON. n. c.

J. B. HADAWAY.

PRESSER FOOT MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

' APPLICATION TILED SEPT. 29, 1904 1 Q30,582 Patented June 25, 1912.

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Wm/55.55 mam/70R A TTV.

COLUMBIA PLANOORAPH c0. WASHINGTON. n. c

J. B. HADAWAYJ PRESSER FOOT MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 29, 1904.

1;()30,582, Patented June25, 1912.

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TTNTTED STATES PATENT UFFTCE.

JOHN B. HADAWAY, 0F BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY COMPANY, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 25, 1912.

Application filed September 29, 1904. Serial No. 226,421.

To all whom it may concern Be itknown that 1, JOHN B. HADAWAY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brockton, in the county of Plymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and .useful Improvements in Presser Foot Mechanism for Sewing- Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to an improvementin presser foot mechanism for sewing machines.

The object of this invention is to reorganize and improve this class of mechanisms and particularly to secure more uniformity of pressure exerted by the presser foot upon the materials being sewed.

The invention is shown in connection with the well-known Goodyear rapid stitcher illustrated with substantial accuracy in the patent to French and Meyer, No. 473,870, April 26, 1892. The present presser foot mechanism is substituted for the presser foot mechanism illustrated and described in the said patent.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the presser foot mechanism and so much of the machine as is necessary to show the cooperative relation of the mechanism with the machine.

Figure 1 is a right-hand side elevation of the mechanism; Fig. 2 is a front elevation, and Fig. 3 is a plan of the same. Fig. 1 is an elevation similar to Fig. 1, showing the presser foot mechanism alone, and Fig. 5 is a plan of the same.

The presser foot P, the work support WV, the thread lifter L, the feed slide F and the frame H are all constructed and arranged as in said patented machine. The forward end 1 of the presser foot lever is substantially the same in construction as the forward end of the presserfoot lever of said patented machine. The rear end 2 of the presser foot lever is provided with two arms, one, 8, of which carries the thread measuring frame 4 which corresponds to the frame F of said patented machine in function and mode of operation, and difiers therefrom only in this, that the rear side of the frame is cut away to afford space for new parts. A spring 5 (corresponding to the spring N in said patented machine) normally tends to move the frame 1 upward and consequently to move the presser foot down toward the work support. Another spring 6. secured to the rearwardly extended portion of the presser foot lever projects rearwardly therefrom and at its end engages a pin 7 secured in the frame H of the machine. Thls spring 6 prevents the spring 5 from moving the presser foot into contact with the work support when no material is being sewed and the machine is moving, and permits the presser foot to receive an additional positive movement toward the work support from mechanism hereinafter described without engagement therewith. Otherwise the machine could not be turned over without injury unless work or some compressible material were interposed between the presser foot and work support. In the said patented machine this device was not necessary because the mechanism for moving the presser foot toward the work support exerted its force only through the medium of a spring there being no final positive movement. The other arm 8 of the rear portion 2 of the presser foot lever is extended upward and is provided with a pin to which is pivotally attached a rack 9 which extends -rearwardly and downwardly therefrom and engages a pinion 10 mounted on a stud secured in the bracket 11 secured to the frame H of the machine, (which bracket corresponds to the bracket B of said patented machine). The pinion 10 and the rack 9 and the operating mechanism therefor comprise the means for actuating the presser foot in the direction to cause it to clamp, compress and hold the work against the work support.

A rack guide 12 is provided which embraces the opposite side of the rack from the pinion 10 and prevents the rack from moving away from said pinion. This rack guide 12 is pivotally mounted upon a stud 13 secured in the bracket 11. Upon the sides of the pinion 10 and integral therewith, are provided clutch sleeves 14 and 15. The clutch sleeve 141 is embraced by'a clutch. strap 16 provided with an arm 17 against which bears one end of a spring 18 which normally tends to move the clutch sleeve into the position shown in Figs. 1 and 4. This clutch strap 16 is also provided with an arm 19 in the extremity of which is pivoted ito the arm 19.

a cramping lever 20 having a face on its end which engages a shoulder upon the free end of the clutch strap 16. The free end of the cramping lever 20 carries a slide block 21 which is received in the jaws 22 of a lever 23 pivoted at 24 to the frame of the machine.

The above described arrangement is such that when the lever 23 is turned in the direction of the arrow it rocks the cramping lever in the bearings 19 of the clamping strap and causes its face to engage the free end of the clamping strap, thereby clamping the strap to the clutch sleeve and positively ro- ,tating the clutch sleeve in the direction to move the pinion and through the pinion the rack and the presser foot lever so as to cause the presser foot to move toward the work support. The lever 23 is actuated in a man- .ner hereinafter described, to make this move ment through the medium of a spring and therefore this movement of the presser foot toward the work support is a yielding move ment, and it causes the presser foot to press upon the work with a pressure determined by the strength of the spring through which it is actuated. So far, therefore, we have two means for moving the presser foot toward the worksupport, first the constantly acting spring 5 and second the spring actuated mechanism above described which operates yieldingly after the work has been fed to compress the layers of material together. This clutch mechanism just described conjstitutes yielding mechanism for moving the presser foot toward the work support.

The clutch sleeve 15 is identical in shape with the clutch sleeve 14, and it is embraced by a clutch strap 25 which is similar in all respects to the clutch strap 16, being provided with an arm 26 corresponding to the arm 17, which is pressed against by a spring 27 similar in all respects to the spring 18. It is also provided with an arm 28 similar To this arm 28 is pivoted a cramping lever 29 similar to the cramping lever 20, but differing therefrom in that its face which engages the free end of the clutch strap 25 is tipped back so that it does not engage the said clutch strap until it has swung through a predetermined idle arc. Upon the rear end of the cramping lever 29 is pivotally mounted a slide block 30, similar in all respects to the slide block 21, which is received within the jaws 31 of a lever 32,

also pivoted at 24 to the frame of the machine. This lever 32 is provided with an upwardly extended arm 33 which carries a cam roll running in a cam path 34 in the cam disk 35, (corresponding to the cam disk C in said patented machine). The lever 32 is therefore positively actuated, and after the clutch collar operated thereby is clamped upon the clutch sleeve 15 it operates positively to hold the sleeve against backward rotation and may be adjusted to rotate the pinion 10 and, through the means described, move the presser foot positively a predetermined uniform distance toward the work support. This distance in practice has been found conveniently to amount to from 1/64th to 1/32d of an inch. The mechanism just described operates, therefore, as a third means for moving the presser foot toward the work support.

The two levers 23 and 32 are connected so as to secure their simultaneous movement through a portion of their arcs of movement. The lever 32 is provided with an ear 36 to which is pivotally attached the rod 37 which extends rearwardly therefrom through a hole in the arm 38 which projects downwardly from the lever 23 and is provided with a cup shaped recess upon its rear side, which receives a spring cap 39. A spring 40 embraces the rod 37 and bears at one side against the spring cap 39 and at the other against the adjusting nut 41 which is screwed upon the end of the rod 37 being secured in place by a set nut 42. The two levers 32 and 23 have cooperating engaging faces 43 and 44 which limit the movement of the levers toward each other under the influence of the spring 40. The cam path 34 is provided with two unlocking clips 45 and 46, the former for unlocking the presser foot during the feed, and the latter for unlocking the same while the needle and awl are withdrawn from the material so that the presser foot may be raised by its handle in the ordinary way to permit the insertion and removal of the work from the machine.

The above described arrangement is such that after the awl has penetrated the work and the feed slide has operated to feed it forward the lever 32 is raised, whereby the rod 37 is moved forward by the said lever 32 and the spring 40 is thereby compressed. This spring bearing upon the spring cap 39 presses against the lever 23, and tends to raise it with the lever 32 and to maintain the faces 44 and 43 in contact with each other. This it will do until the pressure exerted by the spring 40 through the means described, upon the presesr foot is overcome by the resistance of the materials, when the lever 23 comes to rest, and then the lever 32, continuing its upward movement, causes the clutch 25 to close, so that the presser foot is locked and positively held in position or, if desired, actuated by the means described positively to move downward toward the work to give a final positive compressing movement. This movement of the lever 32 which causes it to close the clutch 25 and to lock the presser foot or give the positive downward movement thereto is incidentally accompanied by a corresponding movement of the lever 23 so that the pressure upon the materials exerted by the presser foot consists of the sum of the pressures exerted by the spring 40 and the positively acting mechanism. It is to be observed in this connection that the positively acting clutch does not begin to operate until either the spring 40 has ceased to operate or until it has moved the presser foot as far as it may before the closing of the clutch 25, that is, the positively acting mechanism.

The arm 19 of the clutch ring 16 normally rests upon the stop pin 47 and the clutch ring 16 therefore begins its operative clutching movement always at the same time. It is to be noted that the spring 18 holds the clutch ring 16 with its arm 19 against the stop pin 47 at all times when it is permitted to do so by the cramping lever 20 and in this position, when the lever 20 is in its lowered position, the clutch is released and frees the sleeve 14, so that the presser foot may move to accommodate itself, during the feeding of the work, to variations in the thickness thereof. The arm 28 of the clutch ring 25, rests upon an eccentric portion 48 of the stop pin 47, and the normal position of the clutch ring 28 is therefore dependent upon the position of the eccentric 48. The stop pin 47 is provided with a head 49 secured thereto by a taper pin 50, and it has a series of holes 51 therein, which are adapted to be engaged by a pin so that the said adjustable stop pin 47 may be rotated to bring the desired port-ion of the eccentric 48 into engagement with the arm 28 of the clutch ring 25. A set screw 52 is employed to fix the stop pin 47 in adjusted position. By these means the time when the positively acting clutch begins to operate positively to lock the presser foot or to move the presser foot downward may be accurately determined, and the yielding movement of the presser foot may be increased and the positive movement thereof be decreased or abolished or vice versa, as desired.

The elbow lever 53, and the link 54 by which it is connected with the crank of the rock shaft for the thread measurer, are the same as in said patented machine, corresponding to the elbow lever f and link f except that the link 54: is curved upwardly to clear the parts of the machine which have been substituted for those removed.

The operation of the presser foot mechanism herein described and forming the subject of this invention, in the best embodiment known to the applicant is as follows :The presser foot P is normally held against the work by the spring 5 acting through the thread measuring frame 4: in the same manner as the similar spring operated in the machine of said patent. After the awl has penetrated the work and fed it forward the proper distance, the lever 32 is raised by its cam, and through the medium of the spring 40 the lever 23 is also raised simultaneously therewith. The lever 23 closes the clutch upon the clutch sleeve 14, and the presser foot is moved through the medium of the spring 40 toward the work with a pressure dependent upon the tension of the spring 40. After the spring has exerted as much force upon the materials as it is capable of exerting the faces 43 and 14 upon the two levers 23 and 32 tend to separate, and, if the clutch 25 has been closed by its lever 32 the positive movement of the presser foo-t toward the work support begins, but if the clutch operated by the lever 32 is not yet in position to be closed by the contact of the cramping lever 29 with its clutch ring 25 then there ensues an idle movement of the lever 32 during which it slightly increases the pressure of the spring 40 upon the presser foot, and then it closes the clutch ring 25 upon the clutch sleeve 15 and the presser foot is locked, and, if so adjusted, a positive movement of the presser foot toward the work support begins and is continued to completion.

The present invention contemplates in its broader aspects presser foot actuating mechanism operating automatically to cause the presser foot to engage the work with a preliminary yielding pressure and then with a secondary yielding pressure to press the layers of the work together and thereafter to exert a positive predetermined uniform action on the presser foot. In the machine of the patent referred to the presser foot was moved toward the work support under the influence of a spring and held from motion away from the work support by.

means of a pawl and ratchet device, but obviously in such a mechanism the presser foot may yield a distance corresponding to the distance between the pawl and-the next ratchet tooth, as a consequence of which particularly in sewing around the shank of the shoe, the materials were liable not to be forced together with the proper pressure in order to secure a tight seam, whereas, according to the present invention, the presser foot after having been moved through the medium of the spring toward the work until the spring will move it no farther in that direction,is operated upon by a positively acting device which locks it against any backward movement whatever or locks it and moves it positively a farther distance, thereby compressing the materials firmly together and securing a tight seam.

It is believed that a mechanism by which a presser foot is yieldingly moved toward the work support to clamp the layers of material together, and is then positively moved toward the work support a predetermined farther distance, is broadly new and such a mechanism is considered to constitute a feature of the present invention.

Other features of the present invention consist in certain devices, combinations and arrangements of parts as defined in the claims, the advantages of which will be obvious 'to those skilled in the art, from the preceding description.

WVhile I have described the preferred embodiment of my invention and illustrated it in connection with the Goodyear rapid stitcher, it is to be understood that my invention is not limited to such embodiment thereof, but may be embodied in other and widely differing forms.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is 1. Presser foot mechanism for sewing machines, having, in combination, a work support,a presser foot, means for holding the presser foot yieldingly against the work, yielding means for moving the presser foot toward the work support to clamp the layers of material together, and means for thereafter exerting a positive predetermined uniform action on the presser foot regardless of variations in the thickness of the work, substantially as described.

2. Presser foot mechanism for sewing machines, having, in combination, a work support, a presser foot, yielding means for moving the presser foottoward the work support to clamp the layers of material together and means for positively moving the presser foot a predetermined farther distance toward the work support regardless of varia tions in the thickness of the work, substantially as described.

3. Presser foot mechanism for sewing machines, having, in combination, a work support, a presser foot movable toward and from the work support to accommodate stock of varying thickness, and means for positively moving the presser foot a predetermined uniform distance toward the work support from any position which it assumes in accommodating stock of varying thickness, substantially as described.

4. Presser foot actuating mechanism for sewing machines, having, in combination, a work support, a presser foot, a spring for moving the presser foot toward the work support, mechanism connected to the presser foo-t including a yielding and a positive connection, and a cam for actuating said mechanism to move the presser foot yieldingly toward the work support to clamp the layers of material together and thereafter to move the presser foot positively toward the work support a farther predetermined distance regardless of variations in the thickness of the work, substantially as described.

5. Presser foot actuating mechanism for sewing machines, having, in combination, a work support, a presser foot, a spring normally acting to movethe presser foot toward the work support to cause the work'support to bear upon the work, a positively acting mechanism to move the presser foot toward the work support a uniform distance, and

a stop spring operating to prevent the above named spring from moving the presser foot into engagement with the work support, substantially as described.

6. Presser foot mechanism for sewing machines, having, in combination, a work support, a presser foot, and presser foot actuating mechanism comprising two clutches and cam actuated devices operating through the medium of a spring to close one clutch and move the presser foot yieldingly toward the work support, and operating thereafter to close the other clutch to lock the presser foot, substantially as described.

7. A sewing machine, having, in combination, a work support, a presser foot, mechanism connected to the foot including a yielding and a positive connection, and a cam acting on said mechanism to move the presser foot yieldingly toward the work support to clamp the layers of material together and thereafter exert a positive predetermined uniform action on the presser foot regardless of variations in the thickness of the work to lock the presser foot in clamped position, substantially as described.

8. Presser foot mechanism for sewing machines, having, in combination, a work support, a presser foot, and actuating mechanism for the presser foot including a camactuated member and connections between said member and the presser foot including a spring, the actuating mechanism operating first to press the presser-foot toward the work support by a spring-compressing movement of definite amplitude whatever the position of the presser foot and then to lock the presser foot positively against return movement substantally as described.

9. Presser foot mechanism for sewing machines having in combination, a work support, a presser foot, a spring to press the presser foot yieldingly toward the work support, a frictional clutching device, and means for actuating the clutching device to move the presser foot positively a predetermined distance toward the work support after the presser foot has ceased to move under the influence of the spring regardless of variations in the thickness of the work, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN B. HADAWAY.

iVitnesses:

FRED O. Frsrr, ALFRED H. HILDRETH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. C. 

